Amazon starts Boxing Day sale on Christmas Day

Amazon.co.uk will begin its Boxing Day sales on Christmas Day this year, responding to the fact that many people are expected to receive tablets as Christmas presents.

Huge discounting beginning on Christmas Day itself will then run through until 1st January. The retailer has also revealed that nine of the top ten purchases made on gift cards on Christmas Day 2011 were Kindle books, with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larrson (Quercus) its bestseller.

In the last five years, Amazon has seen Christmas Day purchases rise by 263% in the UK, it reported. "Amazon expects Christmas Day 2012 to be its busiest Christmas Day to date due, in part, to the growth in home broadband, tablets and smartphones," the company said.

Xavier Garambois, vice-president of EU Retail at Amazon, said: "The digital revolution has certainly played a part in this growth and Christmas Day is our biggest day of the year for MP3 and Kindle book downloads as many people are buying content from new devices that they have just received. It's not just digital items though, we are seeing purchases of everything from baby products to women's clothing rapidly growing on Christmas Day. Many customers are shopping on Christmas Day in a way that has previously only been seen in the retail industry on Boxing Day."

Christopher North, Amazon.co.uk m.d. added: "Digital products are clear winners on Christmas Day due to the instant satisfaction they give of being able to read or listen to them immediately."

The deals will include Buy One Get One Half Price from Kindle Accessories and up to 80% off select Apps in the Amazon Appstore.